1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fastener that can be used to attach a heat sink to a cover of an electronic assembly.
2. Background Information
Integrated circuits are typically assembled into packages that are soldered to a printed circuit board. The printed circuit board and integrated circuit package may be assembled into a cartridge that can be plugged into a motherboard of a computer. For example, Intel Corp., the assignee of the present application, has sold a cartridge commonly referred to as a single edge contact cartridge (SECC) that includes a heat sink and a cover that are coupled to a printed circuit board. The SECC may have a number of integrated circuit packages mounted to the printed circuit board and thermally coupled to the heat sink.
The heat sink is attached to the cover by a number of fasteners that extend through clearance holes in the printed circuit board. The fasteners are constructed to exert a spring force that push the heat sink into one of the integrated circuit packages. The integrated circuit package in contact with the heat sink contains a microprocessor that generates a relatively large amount of heat during operation. The spring force decreases the thermal impedance between the package and the heat sink.
The fasteners of the prior art are relatively expensive to produce and assemble into the SECC. It would be desirable to provide an electronic assembly fastener that can exert a spring force and is relatively inexpensive to both produce and assemble.